TWI623052B - Fluid uniform device - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention provides a fluid homogenizing device, which is provided with a rotatable sleeve on the outer sleeve of the long tube type fluid carrying unit, and the two-dimensional direction control of the reciprocating movement of the combined substrate is spin-coated by the sleeve to achieve linear uniformity of the two axes. A large area is uniformly coated.

Description

Fluid uniform device

The present invention relates to film preparation techniques, and in particular to a fluid homogenizing apparatus for preparing a large area uniform film layer.

Film preparation is the basic technology of modern industry. The basic manufacturing of semiconductors, panels and solar cells requires sophisticated thin film coating technology. Precision and mass production technology is an important means to maintain competitiveness. Therefore, coating technology with large area and uniformity has become an important target for technical competition in related industries.

For the thin film preparation technology of physical vapor deposition or chemical vapor deposition in dry coating, how to form a uniform film in a large area is a key technology. That is, the distribution of the gas finally deposited on the substrate, whether deposited by molecules on the sputter target or deposited on the substrate by evaporation, or deposition of the reactive gas on the substrate, needs to be deposited in some way. The substance is evenly spread on the substrate.

A copper indium gallium selenide (CIGSS) thin film solar cell is fabricated on a soda glass substrate, and a CIG (copper indium gallium) precursor is fabricated by vacuum sputtering or electroplating, in combination with Rapid Thermal Processing (RTP) (US 5, 578, 503) Process - Selenization / Sulfurization The CIGSS absorber layer (US 8,741,685 B2) is prepared with the advantages of high quality, high speed and suitable for large-area production. In 2011, Shogo et al., U.S. Patent No. 8,012,546, discloses a method and a device for a four-element co-evaporation of a copper indium gallium selenide thin film solar cell by plasma dissociation of selenium vapor, which is passed through a plasma source after heating and evaporation of the metal selenium material. Additional energy is supplied to the selenium clusters (Se2, Se5, Se6, Se7, Se8) which are less reactive, and dissociated into active selenium atoms, thereby increasing the reactivity. The copper indium gallium selenide film thus formed has a large grain size and a flat and dense surface characteristic, which contributes to an increase in short-circuit current and an increase in a fill factor, and the photoelectric conversion efficiency is improved by 5%. However, due to the limitation of the equipment and the principle of action of the co-evaporation process, the uniformity of large area cannot be achieved by this method. The entire cavity is filled with selenium vapor, and most of the selenium vapor adheres to the cavity wall, which also causes the use of raw materials. waste. Therefore, equipment that can achieve large area uniformity and limited selenium vapor is necessary. In one application of the present invention, in the plasma preparation technology of plasma selenization, the linear plasma can be moved through the rotating nozzle sleeve and the substrate to obtain a large-area and uniform film preparation.

A method for film defect passivation by plasma nitridation is disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 4,448,633, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. If this principle is applied to hydrogen plasma assisted selenization, the metal precursor layer is easily bombarded by the plasma under the low vacuum state of general selenization, resulting in a rough surface, which will affect the subsequent process and photoelectric conversion efficiency of the component. Therefore must Designing a structure in which the plasma generating chamber is separated from the process reaction chamber (ie, Remote Plasma System) can produce a copper-indium-selenium-series absorption layer film of better quality. The test piece is placed directly into contact with the plasma of the input gas. A process chamber like this is sometimes called a direct plasma process. Another type of cold plasma process is a Remote Plasma (also known as Remote Plasma). It is a down-stream process). The difference between the two is whether the material gas is directly excited into a plasma. In the direct process, all raw material gases are exposed to the plasma and the test piece is completely immersed in the plasma. In Remote Plasma, not all of the reaction gases are excited once in the plasma, and the substrate is located away from the plasma zone, and the gas can be simultaneously input into the reaction zone outside the discharge zone and the discharge zone, usually near the substrate. The advantage of this arrangement is that it can reduce the number of items that may be reacted and improve the process or control of the process stoichiometry. Some of the physical effects of the plasma on the substrate are alleviated in the Remote reactor, and radiation damage is almost completely eliminated. One of the techniques of the present invention is that a linear long-distance plasma can be integrated into a dynamic nozzle, and the linear plasma can be moved through the rotating nozzle sleeve and the substrate to obtain a large-area and uniform film preparation. It can also avoid the direct damage of high-strength plasma by the generation of long-distance plasma.

In order to solve the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention provides a fluid homogenizing device, which is provided with a rotatable sleeve on the long tube type fluid carrying unit, and uses the sleeve to rotate and combine the two-dimensional direction control of the reciprocating movement of the substrate. The method of preparing a large-area uniform film composed of linear homogenization of two axes law.

The present invention is a fluid homogenizing device comprising: a fluid carrying unit, which is a closed hollow long tube, the long tube has at least one fluid inlet at one end, the long tube side wall has at least one fluid outlet; The sleeve is disposed outside the fluid carrying unit, the sleeve has a concentricity with the fluid carrying unit, the sleeve sidewall has at least one fluid spout, the sleeve is rotated about its axis; and at least two isolated A rotating roller is disposed between the fluid carrying unit and the sleeve.

In one embodiment of the invention, the flow system is a gas, liquid, liquid-gas mixture, solid-liquid mixture, plasma or other type of fluid.

In one embodiment of the invention, the fluid carrying unit is made of stainless steel or graphite.

The fluid homogenizing device of the present invention and the plasma cracking device may be a plasma homogenizing device, comprising: a fluid uniform device as described above; a plasma generating unit located inside the fluid carrying unit, the system comprising a high voltage An electrode, a dielectric layer and at least two supporting members; the fluid carrying unit is used as a grounding electrode of the plasma generating unit, and the grounding electrode and the dielectric layer define a plasma generating space, and the high voltage electrode and the When a high voltage is applied between the ground electrodes, and a reactive gas is introduced into the plasma generating space, the reactive gas generates a plasma in the plasma generating space, and the plasma flows from the fluid outlet to the fluid carrying unit. In the space between the sleeve and the sleeve, the sleeve is simultaneously rotated to spray the plasma outward through the fluid orifice and onto a target workpiece.

In one embodiment of the invention, the high voltage electrode is made of graphite.

In one embodiment of the invention, the dielectric layer is made of quartz.

In one embodiment of the invention, the ground electrode (i.e., the fluid carrying unit) is made of graphite.

The above summary, the following detailed description and the accompanying drawings are intended to further illustrate the manner, the Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be described in the following description and drawings.

11‧‧‧Fluid bearing unit

111‧‧‧ fluid inlet

112‧‧‧ Fluid outlet

12‧‧‧ casing

121‧‧‧ fluid vents

13‧‧‧Isolated rotating roller

21‧‧‧Fluid bearing unit

211‧‧‧ fluid outlet

22‧‧‧ casing

221‧‧‧ fluid vents

23‧‧‧Isolated rotating roller

24‧‧‧Plastic generating unit

241‧‧‧High voltage electrode

242‧‧‧ dielectric layer

243‧‧‧Support

1 is a schematic view showing the structure of a fluid homogenizing device of the present invention.

2 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the structure of the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a structural view showing another embodiment of the fluid homogenizing device and the plasma cracking device of the present invention.

The embodiments of the present invention are described below by way of specific examples, and those skilled in the art can readily appreciate other advantages and functions of the present invention from the disclosure herein.

In the existing large-area film coating technology, a long tube type or a long strip type gas homogenizing device is often used, the nozzle thereof faces downward, and a target workpiece (for example, a glass substrate) reciprocates back and forth under the nozzle to generate a large surface on the substrate. Uniform area In the actual use, the film is only moved by the relative position of the gas homogenizing device and the substrate, and it is impossible to ensure uniform distribution of the material gas to be ejected, thereby causing uneven thickness of the target film on the substrate. In order to improve the shortcomings of the prior art, the present invention uses a rotatable sleeve to be sleeved on the outside of the uniform device (ie, the fluid carrying unit of the present invention), and provides additional spray direction and range control by using the rotary motion of the sleeve, thereby more accurately The target substrate is coated to ensure uniform thickness of the film, improving process efficiency and product yield.

Please refer to FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 simultaneously. FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view and a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the fluid homogenizing apparatus of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the fluid homogenizing apparatus comprises: a fluid carrying unit 11 which is closed. a hollow long tube having at least one fluid inlet 111 at one end, the long tube side wall having at least one fluid outlet 112; a sleeve 12 disposed outside the fluid carrying unit 11, the sleeve 12 and the long tube (ie, the fluid carrying unit 11) has the same axis, the side wall of the sleeve 12 has at least one fluid nozzle 121, the sleeve rotates about its axis; and at least two isolates the rotating roller 13 Between the fluid carrying unit 11 and the sleeve 12. In the actual application of the present invention, the shape, position and quantity of the fluid inlet, the fluid outlet, the fluid nozzle, the isolated rotating roller and the like may be determined according to actual needs of the user, and are not limited to the contents and drawings disclosed in the present invention. The scope.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the fluid outlet may be a slit opening, that is, an elongated opening to uniformly feed the fluid inside the fluid carrying unit to the space between the sleeve and the fluid carrying unit. .

When the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention is actually operated, the working fluid flows into the fluid carrying unit 11 from the fluid inlet 111, and then flows from the fluid outlet 112 (in this embodiment, a slit port) to the sleeve 12 and the The space between the fluid carrying units 11; the two ends or one end of the sleeve 12 is provided with a rotary driving mechanism (not shown) for driving the sleeve 12 with its axial center (the same as the fluid carrying unit 11) The shaft 12 performs a rotary motion; the sleeve 12 ejects the fluid from the plurality of nozzles 121 of the fluids simultaneously, and rotates clockwise or counterclockwise to uniformly spray the fluid over a large area on a substrate (not shown). The purpose of the above. In an embodiment of the invention, the rotary drive mechanism can control the precision rotation rate and direction of the sleeve to control the spraying effect of the fluid uniform device. The rotating drive mechanism forms a gas-tight joint with the sleeve at both ends to avoid leakage of working fluid. Since the target substrate workpiece (for example, the glass substrate) can be precisely reciprocated, the uniform flow of the fluid in the vertical direction of travel (Y axis) is achieved by the direction of travel (X-axis) of the substrate and the rotational movement of the sleeve. Uniformly distributed on the workpiece (glass substrate). According to this, the large-area uniform coating constituted by the linear homogenization of the two axes is completed.

In an embodiment of the invention, the fluid inlet may be located at one or both ends of the fluid carrying unit (long tube), depending on the needs of the user.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the isolated rotating roller is disposed at a position near the two ends of the sleeve (ie, a rotary driving mechanism near the two ends), which may be a long cylinder, as shown in FIG. 2, The fluid outlet is fixed, from The fluid flowing out of the fluid outlet is confined to the area between the two isolated rotating rollers without leaking to other positions of the casing to achieve the effect of restricting the fluid flow area and avoiding fluid leakage. The actual position and quantity of the isolated rotating roller can be determined according to the user's needs. The isolating rotating roller simultaneously ensures that the fluid carrying unit does not directly contact the sleeve, and the sleeve is rotated smoothly.

The fluid homogenizing device of the present invention can be used for a CIGS solar cell component process, a semiconductor component process, and the like, which requires a large-area vapor deposition film. However, the application field of the present invention is not limited thereto, and a large-area spray fluid application is required. For example, in the technical field of agricultural horticulture irrigation, spray cooling system, spray granulation process, etc., the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention can be used as a large-area fluid for uniform spraying according to the actual needs of various fields.

In an embodiment of the present invention, if the working flow system to be sprayed is a plasma, the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention and the plasma cracking device may be combined into a plasma homogenizing device to plasma the cracking target. After the material, the film is evenly spread on the substrate in a large area. A structural view of another embodiment of the fluid homogenizing device and the plasma cracking device of the present invention is shown in FIG. 3, comprising: a fluid carrying unit 21, which is a closed hollow long tube, the long tube side wall having at least a fluid outlet 211; a sleeve 22 is disposed outside the fluid carrying unit 21, the sleeve 22 and the long tube (ie, the fluid carrying unit 21) have the same axis, and the side wall of the sleeve 22 has at least one a fluid nozzle 221, the sleeve is rotated about its axis; at least two isolating the rotating roller 23 is disposed between the fluid carrying unit 21 and the sleeve 22; the plasma generating unit 24 is located Fluid bearing Inside the unit, the system includes a high voltage electrode 241, a dielectric layer 242 and a support member 243; wherein the fluid carrying unit is used as a ground electrode of the plasma generating unit, the high voltage electrode, the dielectric layer and the ground electrode (the fluid bearing Unit) constitutes a complete plasma cracker.

In a plasma homogenizing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the support member is configured to keep a distance between the ground electrode and the dielectric layer fixed, so that a plasma generating space can be defined between the ground electrode and the dielectric layer. When a high voltage is applied between the high voltage electrode and the ground electrode, and a reactive gas is introduced into the plasma generating space, the reactive gas generates a plasma in the plasma generating space, and the plasma is discharged from the plasma. The fluid outlet flows to a space between the fluid carrying unit and the sleeve, and the sleeve simultaneously performs a rotational movement to eject the plasma outward through the fluid orifice. The reaction gas system is a mixed gas of selenium or sulfur and an inert gas.

In a plasma homogenizing device according to an embodiment of the present invention, the fluid outlet is a slit port, and when the plasma is generated by the plasma generating unit and flows out from the slit of the fluid carrying unit, the casing system Relative to the rotation of the fluid carrying unit, the plasma flowing out through the slit opening is further uniformly spread outward through the plurality of fluid nozzles of the sleeve.

In an embodiment of the invention, the plasma homogenizing device is a Dielectric Barrier Discharge (DBD) module.

In another embodiment of the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention in combination with the plasma cracking device, the power source is supplied by a matching power supply (not shown). should. In the plasma system, a sufficient high voltage is applied between the two electrodes to generate a high electric field, so that the charged particles existing in the reaction space are accelerated and the kinetic energy is obtained. Therefore, the dielectric layer and the fluid carrying unit (ie, the ground electrode) in FIG. The space between the two (isolated by the support) produces plasma. Since the electron mass is extremely low, the speed is therefore much larger than other particles in the electric field. In the case of this speed difference, inelastic collisions easily occur between the particles, and highly active radicals are generated, which can promote the related chemical reaction. In an embodiment of the invention, the working fluid (reaction gas) entering from one side (or both sides) of the fluid carrying unit is converted into a free plasma state in the plasma generating space, and then the fluid carrying unit is shown in FIG. The plasma fluid outlet (which may be a slit port) at the lower end of the ground electrode is sprayed downward to the space between the sleeve and the fluid carrying unit, and then ejected from the plurality of fluid nozzles of the sleeve to perform a spin coating operation. .

Thereby, the fluid homogenizing device of the present invention can uniformly distribute the fluid onto the workpiece via a rotary sleeve device and obtain a uniform film preparation. The rotating sleeve used in the invention has the advantages of simple structure and high reliability, and the user can precisely adjust the state of the fluid even if necessary, as long as a high-precision rotary driving mechanism (such as an electronically controlled stepping motor) is added. The invention can be applied to various occasions requiring large-area coating or spraying fluid, and can also be used as a plasma homogenizing device in combination with a plasma cracking device, and has various application fields and high application flexibility.

The above-described embodiments are merely illustrative of the features and functions of the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the technical scope of the present invention. Anyone skilled in the art can do so without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. The above embodiments are modified and changed. Therefore, the scope of protection of the present invention should be as set forth in the scope of the claims described below.

Claims (7)

A fluid homogenizing device comprising: a fluid carrying unit, which is a closed hollow long tube, the long tube has at least one fluid inlet at one end, the long tube side wall has at least one fluid outlet; Outside the fluid carrying unit, the sleeve has a concentricity with the fluid carrying unit, the sleeve sidewall has at least one fluid nozzle, the sleeve rotates about its axis; and at least two separate rotating rollers Provided between the fluid carrying unit and the sleeve. The fluid homogenizing device of claim 1, wherein the fluid carrying unit is made of stainless steel or graphite. A plasma homogenizing device, comprising: the fluid homogenizing device according to claim 1, wherein the plasma generating unit is located inside the fluid carrying unit, and comprises a high voltage electrode, a dielectric layer and a support member; The fluid carrying unit is used as a ground electrode of the plasma generating unit, and the grounding electrode and the dielectric layer define a plasma generating space, and a high voltage is applied between the high voltage electrode and the ground electrode, and When a reactive gas is introduced into the plasma generating space, the reactive gas generates a plasma in the plasma generating space, and the plasma flows from the fluid outlet to a space between the fluid carrying unit and the sleeve, the sleeve The tube is simultaneously rotated to eject the plasma outward through the fluid orifice. The plasma homogenizing device of claim 3, wherein the high voltage electrode is made of graphite. The plasma homogenizing device of claim 3, wherein the dielectric layer is made of quartz. The plasma homogenizing device of claim 3, wherein the fluid outlet is a slit. The plasma homogenizing device according to claim 3, wherein the reaction gas system is a mixed gas of selenium or sulfur and an inert gas.